This is asked about often. It's certainly true that it's a fraught expedition with lots of opportunity to go wrong but we had a wonderful outing and I wanted to share.

Family of 5 (kids ages 17,14 and 10) departed India Bangalore after 10 day trip with extended family at 2am and took our 10 hour flight (so long and exhausting).... We've been to Paris 2x in 3 years so we knew that we'd have fun even for just a couple of hours. We had checked our luggage through to Atlanta and purposefully had very light bags on the plane. Our flight landed 15 minutes early but really was just on time by the time we got to the gate at 8:10am. We went to the bathroom and checked in with ourselves, how do we feel? Do we want to do this? The lounge is nice.... But we decided to go for it. Knowing that if anything went wrong we could just reverse (delayed trains, long lines).

Exiting airport was quick - no lines... walked straight to RER station. We had thought that with 5 of us a taxi might be a tiny bit faster and same price but after a lot of driving in India and cramped spaces on airplane we decided it would be more pleasant to take the train.

Prior research suggested that it would be a straight shot about 40 minutes to St. Michel station at Notre Dam. We exited the station. Weather was cold but dry. Just being in Paris was incredible as always. Walked a few blocks to take in the vibe and chose a cafe for coffee and croissants. Atmospheric just near St.Chappelle and the Flower market....

After breakfast walked through flower market over to Notre Dam enjoying Christmas decorations... walked behind to enjoy the park there then onto Ile St. Louis. To a favorite cheese shop, to a bakery for baguettes, to the pharmacy for a favorite skin care product. Wove through streets as we made our way toward the metro. We were on the ground in Paris (not including trains) about 2.5 hours. We caught the train back and went through immigration and security with ease to be there 3 hours in advance of our flight. Went to the lounge with enough time for a hot shower and a drink before catching our flight back to Atlanta.

Many discourage such an effort pointing out what could go wrong and the risks of making flights. We knew we'd have to adjust if anything changed our timings and we headed back to the airport to have almost 3 hours. Yes it was only 2.5 hours in Paris but it was great and we're all thrilled we did it.

Thanks for sharing! It worked out perfectly for you. And sure beats sitting in the airport.

It's funny after posting lots of pictures on facebook of very exciting India travels it was the 2.5 hours in Paris that people keep mentioning to me. Wow! That's amazing that you did that. In the end I think it helps the kids have a sense of excitement and adventure and a sense of enthusiastically embracing what you can.....